Tuesday, March 03, 2009

Quick Quiz: Favorite Love Interest?

February's Valentine-themed Quick Quiz poll asked visitors to consider those love interests who have been associated with the fastest man alive over the years, women such as Joan Garrick, Iris Allen, Fiona Webb, Tina McGee, Linda Park, and Valerie Perez. Of these brilliant and beautiful leading ladies, which stands as your favorite character?

Intrepid reporter and occasional time-traveler Iris West Allen--aunt to Wally, grandmother to Bart, and the love of Barry Allen's life--earned a significant 31% of the vote. 9% of the blog's readers cast their ballot for brainy beauty Dr. Tina McGee, who, portrayed by actress Amanda Pays, served as a recurring romantic interest on The Flash television series. No less than 51% of all respondents selected the one and only Linda Park-West, wife to Wally West. Valerie Perez, S.T.A.R. Labs intern and onetime love interest to the impulsive Bart Allen, picked up a further 2%. Golden Age heroine Joan Garrick and romantic stand-in Fiona Webb received no love from the readers. 7% of respondents chose to vote in the Other category, with at least one of those votes being declared for Carol Bucklen, Bart's first girlfriend. Forty-five readers participated in the poll.


Romance has been an integral part of the mythology surrounding the fastest man alive from the very start. It seems that each man to put on the costume of the crimson comet is destined to find his soul mate. Each of those heroes has, as a result, been driven onwards by a limitless passion. Linda Park's position at the lead of this particular poll seemed assured considering the strong role developed for her throughout The Flash (v.2). She earned my vote, as well as votes from many others. With The Flash: Rebirth on the horizon, however, you can bet that the remarkable Iris Allen will soon be back in the spotlight. Which of these women is your favorite character? Let us know using the comment facility below.

Before The Flash: Rebirth thunders into comic shops everywhere and comes to utterly dominate our discourse, the next Quick Quiz asks you to cast your mind back to those pivotal issues that came to define Wally West during his time as the fastest man alive, back to those stunning storylines that kept us reading the scarlet speedster's book. Who could forget the astonishing plot twist at the center of "The Return of Barry Allen," or our maturing hero's discovery of the speed force in "Terminal Velocity"? What comic tale could rival the Flash's deadly showdown with Zoom in the tragic "Blitz," or the winner-take-all battle between supervillains from the thrill-packed "Rogue War"? Of these significant storylines from The Flash (v.2), Wally West's most epic adventures, which is your favorite? Select a title from our sidebar poll!

5 comments:

Diabolu Frank said...

D'oh! I never liked Linda Lane-- er-- Park. Just another example of Mark Waid taking out his frustration at not writing Superman on Wally (regardless of whether Messner-Loebs actually introduced her.)

rob! said...

That is one awesome graph you got there, Dix.

Dixon said...

Don't mock me, Rob! The scarlet speedster is a true romantic and so am I. So Quick Quiz is featuring a pastel-colored, heart-shaped graph. What's wrong with that?!

...and, assuming that wasn't droll sarcasm, thanks for the kind words, buddy.

Dixon said...

Thanks for commenting, Frank! I can't say that you and I see eye to eye regarding Linda Park--I think she was a particularly well-drawn character throughout The Flash's second volume--but I'm glad you shared your thoughts with us. There is more than a little Lois Lane in her make-up, isn't there? Did you vote in the poll? If so, who did you cast your vote for?

Diabolu Frank said...

Iris, mostly by default. I've been fond of Jay Garrick for years, but Joan doesn't do much for me. I only read Barry's solo adventures after he'd lost his wives, so the only love interest of his I really saw him with (briefly) was Zatanna. The only Wally West girlfriends I've spent time with outside Linda were Raven and Speed Demon's ex from the Mike Baron run.

So basically, this whole exercise has exposed the massive gaps in my Flash reading.